 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||||
|
PRINCE2:
A Practical and Prescriptive Project Management Methodology
PRINCE® (Projects in Controlled Environments), is a widely used project management methodology that navigates you through all the essentials for running a successful project. It provides project managers with a practical roadmap from conception to close.
Prince2 is for anyone who wants to learn a correct and proven method for managing projects.
What’s at the heart of PRINCE2? PRINCE2 is made up
of: > 8 Processes > 8 Components > 3 Techniques
1. Starting Up a Project “Do we have a worthwhile and viable project”. A short process before the project begins designed to establish if there is sufficient justification to start work.
2. Initiating a Project Produces the Project Initiation Document – the project baseline or terms of reference. Defines what is to be produced, when and by whom, before committing to significant time and expense
3. Directing a Project A Senior Management (“Project Board”) process: authorizing work, committing resources, giving guidance and managing communication with the environment outside the project boundary
4. Controlling a Stage The “daily bread” of the Project Manager – handing out work, making sure it is completed to the agreed quality, dealing with issues as they arise, reporting to senior management
5. Managing Product Delivery Where the specialist work of the project gets done – driven by the Project Manager in Controlling a Stage, above
6. Managing Stage Boundaries Looking at the big picture – are we still on track?, are the original reasons for the project still valid? Makes sure the project is focused on delivering business benefits – if not, it can be stopped
7. Closing a Project Has everything been delivered as agreed? Is the customer satisfied? Handover any loose ends. Write up end of project reports and record any useful lessons learned
8. Planning How plans are produced at different stages in the Project
1. Business Case A document which states WHY the project is necessary – specifically what benefits it will deliver to the business. Keeps the project relevant. If the project is no longer going to deliver the benefits in the business case, PRINCE2 says it should be ended.
2. Organization Roles and Responsibilities of the Project Management team. Projects often involve multiple sites or staff from several organizations who may be full or part time on the project. It is important to be clear who is responsible for what from the start
3. Plans How to create Plans, when it is appropriate to do so. There is no value in creating a detailed Plan for Year 2 of a project right at the beginning, so PRINCE2 plans close to the time the Plan will be used
4. Controls Information to enable decision making by management – e.g. A PRINCE2 “Checkpoint Report” is produced by Team Managers for the Project Manager so they can keep track of what is happening with their work
5. Management of Risk Dealing with uncertainty. Projects usually have to delivery something unique in a fixed time period using staff who may not have worked together – so a clear Risk Management approach is essential
6. Quality in a Project Environment May be different for each project – for example your approach to spell checking may be different depending on whether you are producing a daily newspaper or the Oxford English Dictionary. What the project means by Quality needs to be understood by everyone from the start
7. Configuration Management Version control – who is working on what? Which version is current? Essential to keep track of everything being produced
8. Change Control “Scope creep” – adding new features as you think of them can ruin a project so that it goes over time or budget. An agreed Change Control method means Project Managers can take a considered and rational approach to Requests for Change
PRINCE2 is a generic project management methodology. It will work with the specialist techniques available and appropriate to the size, subject and sector of the project. Therefore, PRINCE2 has only 3 Techniques:
1. Product Based Planning The only mandatory technique and the start point for all planning activities. PRINCE2 planning commences not with the question; “what shall I do”, but with “what must I deliver”. This product based approach is effective: it starts with the end in mind and focuses on the ultimate goal of the project. Unlike activity based planning (which can be very technical), Product Based Planning involves the customer from the start.
2. Change Control Many organizations have their own change control techniques, so PRINCE2’s approach is optional. If used it provides a simple but robust approach to the control of changes, issues, questions and concerns that the project faces once underway
3. Quality Review Most projects produce documents. Quality Review offers a structured and objective technique for the checking of a draft document against a previously agreed description of that document. All interested parties: the intended user, the producer and those with quality assurance responsibilities can be involved.
PRINCE2 Saves Time. Standardization: This is the biggest
benefit. Everyone on the project is has a common approach to the work. There
are common document sets, filing systems and procedures. Time is saved in
recruitment, training and auditing of projects. The fog is lifted because
everyone is on the same page. PRINCE2 Saves Money. Business Case Driven: The Business Case is the life support system for the PRINCE2 project: it must be in place, continually, from start through middle to the end of the project. If it is taken away the project has no justification, and should be stopped. PRINCE2 builds in mandatory updates and re-assessment of the Business Case at key points to ensure that the project is delivering something of value to the customer organization. Free to Use: The cost to create an in house project management method has been estimated at between $200,000 - $500,000 by the UK Project Manager Today Magazine (August, 2002). Only the largest corporations can do this and, even then, will need to spend time and money training new staff, external suppliers and partners in their proprietary approach. Using PRINCE2 allows all parties to hit the ground running. A large proportion of a national economy is made up of Small to Medium sized Enterprises (SME) who can benefit from PRINCE2’s absence of licensing fees, “per seat” charges, support costs etc. Front Loaded: PRINCE2 is front loaded: a lot of effort is devoted to ensuring that the project is viable and worthwhile before proceeding. Even when this is established, further effort is dedicated to making sure that the project is properly planned, risks are considered and the customers requirements and quality clearly understood. Failure or cessation at the point of project validation and planning is cheap compared to errors or misunderstandings which come to light in products once they have been built. PRINCE2 Delivers Quality and Compliance. Product Based Planning (PBP): All PRINCE2 plans begin with Product Based Planning. During PBP clear Product Descriptions are created to specify the composition, quality and checking arrangements for project deliverables (products). Product Descriptions provide a common quality standard for each deliverable and are the basis of management approval (before work begins), production and quality checking. Product Based Planning allows all members of the Project Team to work together to deliver quality products. Controlled Change: Change can bring chaos to a project - but it is inevitable. PRINCE2’s change control technique provides for the capture and analysis of all project issues. Decision making is made at the appropriate level, and documented clearly. Clear Roles and Responsibilities: Each member of a PRINCE2 Project Management Team has a written role description specifying their responsibilities. This is done before the project even begins so that all team members understand their responsibilities. Improved Compliance: The PRINCE2 Method can be mapped to other quality and compliance standards such as ISO or SOX. PRINCE2 can form part of an organization's overall Quality Management System.
PRINCE2 – Foundation
PRINCE2 – Practitioner
The most common standards in project management are the Project Management Institute's Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK®) and the British Government's Projects in Controlled Environments (PRINCE2). PRINCE2 is a series of Processes, Components and Techniques suitable for any size or subject of project. It describes what a project manager should do. The PMBOK® is a collection of knowledge areas and process groups. It describes what a Project Manager should know. Both systems are global and have hundreds of thousands of certified members. It is generally accepted that PRINCE2 and PMBOK® are complementary and that a complete Project Manager should have knowledge of both. Advantage Learning (An ISSSC Training Solution Partner) is a PMI Registered Education Provider and an Accredited Training Organization for PRINCE2 - so you will gain PDUs by attending our PRINCE2 Training courses. PRINCE (which stands for Projects in Controlled Environments) was first developed by the UK government in 1989 as the standard approach to IT project management for central government. Since then, the method has been enhanced to become a generic, best practice approach suitable for the management of all types of projects, and has a proven record outside both IT and government sectors. PRINCE2 has been widely adopted and adapted by both the public and private sectors and is now the UK's de facto standard for project management. There is also a rapidly growing international interest. PRINCE2 is designed to incorporate the requirements and experiences of existing users around the world.
In summary, PRINCE2's formal recognition of responsibilities within a project, together with its focus on what a project is to deliver (the why, when and for whom) provides your organization’s projects with:
Prince2 Scheduled Courses in the United States
In partnership with Advantage Learning Limited, ISSSC has PRINCE2 courses scheduled in the US. For additional information on PRINCE2 class schedule, please see our training schedule.
Disclaimers: PMI, PMBoK and PMP are trademarks of the Project Management Institute, Inc. which is registered in the United States of America and other nations. PRINCE2 ™ is a Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce. The PRINCE2 Cityscape logo ™ is a Trade Mark of the Office of Government Commerce, and is Registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Courses offered in partnership with Advantage Learning Ltd, a PRINCE2 Accredited Training Organization. PRINCE2 is a trademark of the OGC. |
|
|
|||||||
   Home | Consulting | Training | Products | About Us | In the News | Policy | Contact Us | My Profile © Copyright 2006-09 International Society for Six Sigma Certifications, LLC - Six Sigma Training & Certification |